No one ever doubted Aaron Hernandez's talent, but he reportedly fell to the fourth round because of multiple failed drug test / Getty Images

For the second year in a row, an elite Florida football player fell in the NFL Draft because of issues with marijuana.

Tight end Aaron Hernandez, now a New England Patriot who was named the 2009 Mackey Award winner as college football’s best tight end, fell to the fourth round of last weekend’s draft because of multiple positive marijuana drug tests, according to a report by the Boston Globe.

Hernandez follows in the footsteps of former Gator teammate Percy Harvin, one of the top prospects in the 2009 draft who fell to the 22nd pick after testing positive for marijuana at the NFL Scouting Combine.

The Globe reports that Hernandez passed his drug test at the Combine in February, meaning he won’t begin his NFL career in the league’s substance-abuse program. But the report states that Hernandez failed multiple tests while at UF, and that Hernandez was fairly forthcoming about his marijuana use when interviewing with teams before the draft. Hernandez told teams that his drug use stemmed from the 2006 death of his father, Dennis, who died of complications following hernia surgery while Hernandez was a junior in high school.

“It’s good he did that,” one AFC scout told the Globe. “But it was enough to scare people so that he fell through three rounds.”

Of course, the positive marijuana tests didn’t slow down Harvin, who was named the NFL’s 2009 Rookie of the Year. It didn’t slow down Hernandez last year, either, when he caught 68 passes for 850 yards and five touchdowns. But he didn’t play in the November game against Florida International, and the pervasive use scared teams away from drafting him with an early pick.

“It’s not like he failed one test,” the AFC scout said of Hernandez. “He had repeated issues with it, to the point where you worry about whether he’ll be able to lay off the stuff at our level. To be honest, he’s super talented and, even with the issues, I’m surprised he fell as far he did.”

“He had multiple positive tests, so he either had issues or he’s dumb. One or two tests? Fine. But four, five, six? Come on, now you’ve got an addiction. He’s not a bad kid. He just has an issue.”